FORENSIC CRITERIA OF BLADE WEAPONS DEFINITION AND THEIR IMPACT ON THE EXPERT’S CONCLUSIONS

Abstract

The aim of the article is to prove the necessity to refine main forensics criteria used in identification of cold weapons as well as remedy some of the inaccuracies in the Methodology of conducting forensics research in cold weapons and structurally similar items (registry code 4.5.07). In the research, some faults and controversies have been exposed reference attribution of certain items to cold weapons through lack of justification, analysis and neglect of the temporary nature of their functional use. In order to remove the existing discrepancies between theoretical aspects and practical results of cold weapon research, it has been suggested to expand the existing nomenclature for functional use of the researched items while taking into consideration the temporary nature of item’s functional use and alterations to it; conduct adjustments where appropriate to the Methodology Annexes; develop methodological recommendations for measurement of structural elements of objects under research and improve existing methods of dynamic tests. The credibility of results and conclusions is ensured through general scientific and specialised methods of inquiry: the essence of categories and legal phenomena under research established through the structural systematic method; the existing nomenclature analysed for completeness and relevancy to the latest scientific discoveries using the logical argumentative method; the  dogmatic method has contributed to establishing nomenclature and categorical basis for research, which has asserted the requirement to expand nomenclature for items under research with consideration of the temporary use factor and alternations to functional use, clarification of the term “throwing knife”, review of hardness and springiness thresholds of short-bladed item (equipment) structures that are subject to implementation according to Scheme 1 of the Methodology, whilst taking into consideration real-life values of these indicators in the equivalent unfaulty manufactured short-bladed military (combat) weapons; the statistic method has allowed to generalise results obtained through processing of  empirical materials; the modelling method has enabled formulation of conclusions and general evaluations as well as proposals for developing recommendations on the measurement of structural elements of objects under research,  terminology regulations and nomenclature coherence.
Keywords: cold weapon; general concepts; methodology; deadlines; definitions.